K1 Proof of relationship

A number of people have asked me what I used for proof of relationship for the K1 visa application, so I thought that I would post up what I used.  In our case is was similar to the I-129 petition relationship proof that we used, when my wife put in the  I-129 application (although we probably gave the USCIS more than they needed at that stage).

Basically from I learnt, the standard proof of ongoing relationship that they would accept were things like photos of my wife and I together and together with family, postmarked letters and emails that we had exchanged, telephone bills that showed we had spoken over the phone, and flight tickets that showed we had visited one another.  You are allowed to censor out some of the more personal information from letters etc. I believe.

Anyway, the specific evidence that my wife and I used as K1 proof of relationship was:

Photos of us during a visit.  There was a photo of the two of us together, a photo with the two of us with my fiancee’s daughter, and a photo of my fiancé with me and my family.

The plane tickets that were used for the flights across the Atlantic, and also the ferry tickets that we used on a day trip to France together.

Some of the cards that we had sent to each other by mail – birthday and postcards.

Some printouts of emails that we’d sent each other.  Nothing too personal, of course.

Some printouts of MSN messenger and Skype conversations that we’d had together.

A phone bill to show that we had telephoned each other.  (Although that didn’t happen more than a few times as we generally used Skype to communicate, basically because Skype was cheaper and also we could use webcams, which is more personal).

UPDATE

I mailed my proof of ongoing relationship to the London Embassy, which was the correct procedure at the time, but I think someone told me that visa applicants now have to take their proof in by hand when they attend their K1 Fiance Visa interview.  The rules and guidelines can change at any time, so always double-check with the USCIS website to make sure that you are doing the right thing beforehand.

USCIS I-129 Petition Relationship Proof

There were two occasions when my wife (fiancee at the time) and I had to provide some sort of relationship proof during the k1 fiance visa process.  The first time was when filing our USCIS I-129 petition and the second was when I filed my K1 Fiance Visa application.  In this post I intend to focus on the first occasion, the relationship evidence that we included with the I-129f (I intend to focus on the K1 application in a later post).

The I-129f relationship proof is meant to provide proof that the couple in question have met each other within the two years before the filing of the I-129 petition application.  In our case, my wife (fiancée at the time) was the us citizen applicant and I was the foreign fiancé, so it was she who put in the petition albeit with some supporting evidence from myself.

We were both legally able to marry, neither of us having being married before.  This made some things easier as there were no divorce papers etc. to submit to the USCIS as part of our relationship evidence.

We had met on a number of occasions, despite us living on opposite sides of the Atlantic, with me visiting Florida half a dozen times and my wife and her daughter coming to the UK twice to see me.  We therefore included photos of us together and photos of us with other members of our family.  My wife and I got engaged a month before we filed the I-129 petition, so we also included a photo of the engagement ring on my wife’s hand.

We included ticket stubs for some of the flights we’d taken to visit each other.

Although it probably wasn’t entirely necessary at this stage, we also included some sample copies of the conversations that we’d had with each other on Skype and Instant messaging.

I also wrote a statement, in which I stated that I intended to marry my wife (fiancee at the time) within three months of arriving in the USA.  I signed the letter and posted it to my wife, so that she could use it as relationship evidence.  My statement sample is below:

Dear Sir/Madam

I am writing to confirm that I began a romantic relationship with My Fiancee Name in 2009.  Although the relationship began online, we have since met six times in person in both the UK and USA.  Between visits, our relationship has continued through online chatting, webcam conversations, telephone, letters and email.

In Spring last year, we became engaged to be married.

I have not been married previously.

If a visa is granted, I intend to marry Fiancee Name within 90 days of my arrival in the USA and will make the necessary arrangements in order to do so.

yours faithfully

My name

Getting a UK Police Certificate for Immigration Purposes

What is a police certificate

Some visas now have a requirement that if you are a British citizen, then you must supply the country you are traveling to with a UK Police Certificate for immigration purposes.  The Police Certificate lists what, if any, criminal convictions that you have on your Police National Computer record and gives details of them, if they have not been “stepped down”.  If you have convictions that have been stepped down, the Police Certificate may use terms such as “No Live Trace”, or “Stepped Down”, or “Further Information Stepped Down” (see further down for more information on the terminology).  Some countries require a Subject Access request rather than a UK Police Certificate (more on Subject Access requests below).

Why did I need one?

I personally needed a UK Police Certificate for immigration purposes basically because it was a requirement of my K1 Fiance Visa application, which I was applying for so that I could marry my American girlfriend and live in the USA.

How did I go about getting a UK Police Certificate?

The UK Police Certificate application form was available on the ACPO website.  I downloaded it, filled it in and sent it off.  Along with my filled in UK Police Certificate Application form, I also included a passport photo signed on the back by a teacher friend, a photocopy of the details page of my passport, plus copies of an electric bill and bank statement, as requested, to prove my identity.  I then sent everything to ACRO at Fareham along with a cheque for the fee of £35.

Just over two weeks later, I received my UK Police Certificate for immigration purposes.

What do the terms ‘No Trace’, ‘No Live Trace’, and ‘Further Information Stepped Down’ on my Police Certificate mean?

‘No Trace’ means that you have no convictions, reprimands, final warnings, or cautions held on the Police National Computer.

‘No Live’ Trace means that there is criminal record information held on the Police National Computer but it has been “stepped down”.  Anyone who sees this, including an embassy or consulate, can see that you have a criminal record from your past, even if they can’t see details (that effectively means that you might as well come clean).

“Further Information Stepped Down” means that only some of the information on the Police National Computer has been stepped down.

How do I know what might show up on my Police Certificate?

You can do a Subject Access request at any time.  The Subject Access request tells you everything that is on the Police National computer with regard to any criminal records that you have on there.  If there’s information on there that is incorrect, you can then dispute it.  I had actually submitted a Subject Access request a couple of years prior to applying for a K1 finace visa and getting my UK Police Certificate.  I enquired at my local police station in Leeds to set the ball rolling regarding my Subject Access request.